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2 SheetsSheet 1.

E. PARKER. Railroad Switch.

No. 230,147. PatentedJuly 20, 1880.

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2 Shaets She$2 E. PARKER. Railroad Switch.

No. 230,147. Patented July 20, 18 80,

. I WW W NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EPHRAIM PARKER, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONEHALF OF HISRIGHT TO SAMUEL A. OTIS, OF SAME PLACE.

RAILROAD-SWITCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 230,147, dated July 20,1880.

Application fi led October 13, 1879.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EPHRAIM PARKER, ofBoston, in the county of Sufiolk and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Switches for Railway- Tracks,of which the following is a specification;

My invention relates to that class of switches in which the point orpoints are closed auto- IO matieally by the action of a weight orspring, so that they direct a train approaching from front of the pointinvariably to the main line or to the branch, as the weight or springmay be set to act; but if a train be approaching r 5 from the back ofthe point, either from the main line or the branch, then the train willpass onto the main track without disturbin gthe point-that is, in casethe train is on the line for which the point is being held open by theaction of the weight or spring; but in case the train is on the trackfor which the point is wrongly held, then the flanges of the wheels ofthe approaching train will act upon a horizental lever in such a manneras to set the point right for the train to pass safely to the maintrack.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows a track in which the point is held openby means of a weight for the passage of the car back and.

forth on the main line. Fig. 2 shows a track upon which the point isheld by weight or spring so that the car may safely pass forth and backon the main and side tracks. Fig. 3 shows, in detail, one of the railsand a point 3 5 with a spring instead of a weight to operate the point.Fig. 4 is a plan, showing the crankshaft and its connecting partsenlarged. Fig. 5 is an elevation, showing the same parts shown in Fig.3.

4.0 Let A A and A A represent the two lines of rails of the main track,while B B and B B represent the two lines of rail of the sidin g orbranch track.

B is a point or movable switch, pivoted at 5 I). This moving point B isconnected, by a short link, 0, to a crank-shaft, 0. (See Figs. 1 and 2.)This crank-shaft c has upon it a collar, 0 "Said collar has a set-screw,so that it may be fastened firmly to the crank-shaft c,

or left loose upon it. W is a weight connected by lever W to the collar0 (Z is a link which connects the point B to a crank-shaft device on theother side of the track at H. As this crank-shaft device at H is in allrespects like the one above referred to, it is not necessary to describeit in detail.

In practice only one of these devices is to be used at a time. Forinstance, if the point B is to be held open, as indicated in Fig. 1, sothat the train will pass to and fro on the main track, then the device 0c o W W is disconnected, so that the weighted lever W W has no effect onthe point, and the device at H is connected, so that the weighted leverT T will hold the point open, as shown.

In Fig. 2 the crank-shaft device 0 c o W W is connected to the point, soas to automatically close it, as shown, and the crank-shaft device H isdisconnected, so as to have no action on the point.

In Fig.3 1 have shown a spring, S, and a link,

E, which serve to connect the spring to the point B. This device S E issimply a substitute for the crank-shaft devices already described.

I will now describe the device by which the point B is operated by thewheels of the train.

F is a lever having a fixed fulcrum at h, and connected by a joint at11/ to the point B. The opposite end of this lever F is connected by ajoint at h to a second lever, F, this second lever having a fulcrumfixed at h. Now, when the point B is open, as shown in Fig. l, the leverF lies close to the rail B, its upper surface being on a level with theupper surface of the rail. Therefore the flanges of the wheels of anapproaching train, being on the track B' B, would force this lever Foutward, as indicated by the arrow. This movement of the lever F wouldbe communicated to the lever F andt-hrow the joint 71/ inwardly, so asto close the point B, and thus allow the train to run from the sidingsafely onto the main track.

The point B is provided with a yielding 5' spring side bar, L, so thatthe wheels of a train approaching on the main line from the direction ofthe arrow 1;, Fig. 2, will not strike and act upon the point B soviolently as they would if this spring-bar L were not attached. Thus thepoint B will be opened to allow the train to pass by a comparativelyeasy, steady pressure.

K represents a guard-rail, made and secured. in the ordinary manner.

What I claim isl 1. In a railway-switch, the combination of the point Bwith the spring-bar L, substan tially as described, and for the purposeset forth.

2. In a railway-switch, the combination of EPHRAIM PARKER.

Witnesses ERNEST N. BoYDEN, WILLIAM EDsoN.

